Chapter 1. I was born as a princess! 2020.02.04.
The gas cut off a week ago. Even the electricity was cut off today. My toes were numb from the tips. I heard that today’s weather goes down to minus 12 degrees Celsius, so it was so cold that you could breathe even in the house. After trying unsuccessfully to turn on the gas light a few times, I had no choice but to put on a few more old clothes. Even if I went out at dawn, there was nowhere to go, so all I could do was crouch down as much as I could. I sat on the blanket where the chill rose up and grabbed my cell phone, whose battery was running low. In the cramped house, only the dim cell phone light shone dimly.
“I’m dying of cold…”
The heat emitted by the phone was the last warmth left for me. If even this went off, I had to endure this long night only with my body temperature. When I inadvertently entered Talk, there were a lot of contacts piled up.
– Winter, what are you doing? We are going to the ski resort, would you like to come too?
―What are you doing for a living and there is no contact? dead?
– Winter, winter.
-hey! Yoon Winter!
I skimmed through the messages and turned off the screen.
“Haa…”
A sigh came out of nowhere. I was grateful for my friends who came to visit me, but the circumstances were different between those children and myself. I couldn’t afford it. To put it simply, there was no ‘money’. I might have to starve for a month to go to the ski resort my friend is talking about. However, because of my pride, I never told my friends about such a situation.
‘Sorry. busy. Let’s play later.’
I used to go around like this every time. I’d rather be a busy, careless friend than revealing that I had a father who was terribly poor and had a history of drunkenness. After a few years of running around, my mom finally divorced my dad and left me behind. ‘I don’t blame my mother.’ I could understand because I would be sick of everything if I had a husband like that. However, taking me would have been a burden she could not bear for her mother. After living under his father’s shadow for most of his childhood, he managed to escape, but somehow his father found out where he was and often came to his house to do things. As a result, all of his hard-earned college tuition was taken away and his registration was canceled, so he was only working part-time jobs to earn living expenses. My dad, who even took on huge debts, went in and out of prison on a fictitious day. I got a mail saying that I’m still in prison, so I probably couldn’t come out.
“I wouldn’t go through this trouble if I hadn’t gone to the emergency room.”
A sigh escaped again. Last month, I was suddenly taken to the emergency room, and I had unexpected expenses, so I couldn’t bear to pay the unpaid electricity and gas bills. No matter how much part-time work I did, it was too much to make up for the monthly rent and living expenses. It was time to wrap the warm blanket tighter with a bitter smile. bang!
“Open the door!”
It felt like my hair was standing on end. My heart started beating like crazy at the familiar voice. The man with the distraught voice was someone I knew well.
‘…dad.’
He must be in prison, but when did he get out? But Dad didn’t even give me a second to think about it. Bang! There was no hesitation in knocking on the door. Fearing that someone might come up from the owner’s house, he quickly ran and opened the front door.
“hey! You almost froze. What are you doing opening it now?”
Every word that provoked resentment was mixed with the stench and smell of alcohol. Resisting the urge to cover my nose at any moment, I looked at my father. The old coat, which was so old that it was doubtful when it had been changed, was full of unknown dust, and the shoes were all muddy.
“When did you come out?”
“yesterday. Rather, give me some money. It’s not enough, so I need another drink.”
Looking at the outstretched hand as if it were natural, I shook my head.
“no. They say they can’t even pay their electricity and gas bills because they don’t have money right now.”
“Do not be ridiculous. Do you know what you’re doing? sure just. Give it to me when I say nice things.”
Dad raised his hand menacingly. Because I already knew what kind of pain it was, I shrank my body involuntarily.
“If you don’t give it up, I’ll have to find it. just wait there Winter Yoon.”
Dad, who threatened, went inside the house with his shoes on and started searching the house, opening drawers one by one. I took advantage of that gap and ran outside where the cold wind was blowing.
“hey! Yoon Winter!”
My father, who belatedly found me running away, hurriedly began to chase after me. I desperately ran to the stairs, but the floor was frozen and slippery, and I fell at the moment.
“Ugh…!”
A groan broke out. In the meantime, Dad came right up to us. I took a deep breath and stood up with both hands on the floor. In the meantime, the chapped knees and palms tingled. I tried to go down the stairs.
‘It’s already late.’
Since our house was a rooftop, the natural stop was the edge of the rooftop. wheein-. The wind gusted from the bottom up, blowing wildly through her hair.
“How long are you going to run away? give it up for once Then I won’t hit you.”
“Not really.”
All I had was 20,000 won. It was also my living expenses that I had to endure until two weeks later when my part-time job payment came out. If even this was taken away, there would be nothing to put in the mouth tomorrow.
“If not, why are you running away? Don’t lie, give me something nice!”
Dad yelled and took a step closer. I also tried to back away, but there was a railing right behind me. The beaky eyes glared at me fiercely.
“This is real-”
Just before Dad’s big hand smacked me.
“!!”
In an instant, I felt like my body was floating. The moment I closed my eyes and opened them, I saw my father’s face getting further and further away in my field of vision. It was a spectacle to see her eyes wide open as if in surprise. What are the odds of surviving a fall from a five-story building? Even if he survives, he will eventually die because there is no money for treatment. I’ve been living like a stubborn person, but in the end, my end is so dirty. The things that I painstakingly collected quickly disappeared like sand in my hand. because of family. A harmonious family with others, affectionate parents were something I couldn’t have. It was too much for someone like me.
‘okay. I don’t need anything anymore.’
therefore.
‘So please, just now… I want to be comfortable too.’
And then the blackout came.
***
“Mabel.”
I felt like I was floating in the air with someone’s voice. The unfamiliar hand hesitated somewhat and began to hug me and growl. Mabel Mabel. An unfamiliar voice repeated the words it assumed to be names.
“Cute boy.”
Along with a soft smile, I felt a hand tickle my mouth with his fingertips. It’s definitely the first language I’ve heard, but strangely, I heard it straight away without the slightest awkwardness as if it were my mother tongue.
‘What the hell could this be?’
I opened my eyes to grasp the situation, but I couldn’t see properly. There was only a slight contrast between light and shade. I blinked and tried to look ahead, but I fell asleep from exhaustion. Thoughts kept breaking. I couldn’t even seriously think about it. I felt someone hold me in their arms and shake me, but I swayed helplessly, unable to keep my head still.
“It seems like it’s getting really big after a few days.”
“All thanks to the grace of… I am glad that the princess is well.”
Male and female voices were heard alternately. Could it be that I was born again?
‘Then these people are my parents…?’
Somehow I was in tears. There was absolutely no joy at having loving parents. Even my father, who was a drunkard and hit me on a fictitious day, used to be happy when he saw me when I was very young. just. I’m just tired of being reborn. . . . I was about one month old when I was able to do what I call clear thinking. When I first realized this, I was so surprised that I had been reincarnated with my memories, so I burst into tears.
“Yeah!”
“oh. It’s not meal time yet. Why are you doing this? Is Your Highness nice?”
It was. I was reincarnated. As a princess of a country I’ve never heard of before. At first, I thought that being called a princess was just a nickname parents used to call their daughters ‘our princess’, but it wasn’t. Truly I was a princess. At first, I was in a hurry to deny the reality, but as the same day repeated for several days, I had no choice but to admit it. ‘Mabel Gardenia Ermano.’ That was the new name given to me. I heard the word ‘Mabel’ over and over again even before I thought about it, so I felt like I had been brainwashed. And the country I am in is the Great Empire, Ermano.
‘Of course, it’s better to be a gold spoon than to be poor, but isn’t the difference too severe…!’
When I think of the fact that my death in Winter Yoon was only because of the 20,000 won, I feel depressed. Anyway, I was born again. As the second child of the emperor of the Ermano Empire. From what I have heard, it seems that the person who was my mother passed away shortly after giving birth to me. Usually in novels, at times like this, the father would turn away and neglect the child who killed his wife, but I wonder if the emperor here is like that too.
‘what. It’s okay if I’m neglected.’
I often heard a man’s voice calling me before I could think properly, but I wasn’t sure if it was just my dream or reality. Since the person I thought was my mother was a nanny, I can only speculate that he might not be my father either. Being trapped in the body of a newborn at the mental age of a 20-year-old was terrifying. What did you do that made you fall asleep like this? There was nothing to do but eat and sleep most of the day. After crying for a long time, I fell asleep and woke up to a hand touching my cheek.
“…?”
“Look at this, Madam. Doesn’t it look like you’re looking at me? Uh, I think we’ve met eyes now.”
The first thing I saw were blue eyes looking down at me. I was taken aback by the first face I saw, and I froze in an instant.
“The princess seems to recognize her father. You’ve been crying a lot until just now, but you’re calm as if you never did.”
I was bewildered by the nurse’s words.
‘This person… is my father?’
I thought it was a lie at the moment because I was too young to be called a father. Aren’t you a father and a brother? It was enough to believe that he was an older brother with a big age difference. Neat silver hair that slightly covered her blue eyes and neck. His features look somewhat frightening, but the image is quite soft as he smiles at me. Then the man looked at me and reached out his hand.
“!”
‘That’s right!’
I thought I was going to hit him for a moment, so I closed my eyes tightly. But there was no pain. I slowly opened my eyes to the gentle touch on my head.
I saw the man’s face still smiling.
“She is also my daughter. Aren’t you very smart to recognize your father already?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The person called dad was so different from what I expected. Did I watch too many dramas? Usually, at times like this, don’t you treat your children coldly, saying, ‘You made my wife die!’ It was then. The man’s hand slowed just a little bit.
“…If Cyanna were alive, she would have been more delighted than me.”
“Your Majesty…”
From the conversation of the nanny, who answered sadly as well as the voice of a grievous man, I could easily infer that Sianna was my mother’s name. The man’s gaze was on me, but it seemed to be thinking of his wife who had left.
“Mabel. Only you, this father will protect you. Promise me.”
The man’s thick fingers touched my slightly stretched palm. I involuntarily closed my hands and squeezed those fingers. It really wasn’t arbitrary. It’s common knowledge that babies learn at school to reflexively grasp what touches their palms! But why is the man named father smiling brightly?
“Cute boy.”
The man looked at his fingers and laughed at what was good. At first glance, he seemed happy. But I was very burdened by this great interest. It was human beings who did not know when to change abruptly when they poured out their affection as if they were the only beings and precious daughters. I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t be abandoned this time, as I’ve always been unlucky. I didn’t even want it. Like family love.
‘Winter. Our beautiful winter.’
Dad, who used to kiss me because he liked me, changed his mind shortly after and waved his hand at me without hesitation. If you hadn’t told me you loved me from the beginning, you wouldn’t have had any expectations. It would be a lie if I said I wasn’t shaken by the attitude of a man who seemed to care about me. So I remembered the promise right before I died.
‘I don’t need anything now.’
So this time, let’s not expect anything and go unnoticed. Life is about living alone anyway, right?
***
Ermano’s Emperor Esteban Nice Ermano had two very big worries recently. One is about a hostage of a tycoon captured after a border clash with enemy country Devlin. Another was about his daughter, Mabel, who was just over a month old. Esteban put aside the matter of Devlin’s hostage for now.
‘Actually, nothing is more important than Mabel.’
The cause of the trouble was the priests who made a fuss over Mabel, claiming to be a child of God, and threatening to take Mabel to Abelardo, the holy kingdom. They made a request that could not be fulfilled under the pretext of an oracle that Mabel had come down on the day she was born.
“Yes, trust.”
Esteban gnashed his teeth. Because of that oracle, the priests used to raid the imperial castle every day. -The eastern end. The seed to save the world has been planted. The great empire, Ermano, was located in the easternmost point, and everyone knew that on the day Mabel was born, flashing thunder struck the sky of the imperial castle. Esteban, who was waiting for the birth while holding the hands of the sweaty empress Sianna, also heard the sound. The servants congratulated Her Highness, saying that the princess was unusual, but Esteban wasn’t happy at all. It was only a little over 15 days since Cianna, who was too weak to endure the aftermath of childbirth, died. To Esteban, who has not yet recovered from the shock of losing his wife, Mabel was a very special person. A very lovely daughter who resembles Siana. Esteban’s gaze was sharp enough to pierce through the priest’s letter. He then tore the paper to pieces.
“ha.”
The aide who was watching sighed and covered his face with both hands. Esteban glanced at the aide and coldly brainwashed him.
“Tell me that it is dismissed without any room for reconsideration.”
“Yeah…”
I meant to ignore it for now, but I wasn’t sure how long I could hold on. The Holy Nation side will constantly demand it. Since Oscar is the first prince anyway, the chances of Mabel inheriting the next throne are slim, so they say they will serve them. In any case, within the short period of time, he had to find a way to defeat the will of the Holy Nation. Since they wouldn’t give up their will in any way, they needed a plausible reason. Esteban tore up another priest’s letter under it and looked up at the presence of someone hanging around the doorway. He glanced at the waiting attendant and the attendant quickly opened the door.
“oh…!”
Suddenly, at the door that opened, someone slanted and screamed.
